Just a Programme
by Twozulz
Summary: Some cross-y universe-y problems are occurring on the TARDIS. Harry is tired of Albus' obsession with a certain sci-fi show. In short, the Potters' lives may be changed forever.
1. Dalek Impersonations and a Police Box

"EXTERMINATE!" a loud voice shouted in the doorway of the bedroom. Harry Potter sighed and pulled his pillow on top of his head, trying to block out the noise and wondering why everybody in his family woke up so bloody early on the weekend. He wearily glanced to the side to look at the alarm clock on his bedside table. Yep. 7:30. Bloody early.

"EXTERMINATE1" the sound again echoed loudly around the room. Pulling the pillow even tighter around his ears, Harry simultaneously racked his brain for the possible source of the noise when he felt an elbow jab into his shoulder. Looking to the side, his wife's tired eyes gazed up at him. Wearily, Ginny whispered, "It's your turn to deal with him, Harry." Sighing, she too pulled a pillow over her head and cuddled back under the covers.

Confused at the meaning of her words, Harry sat up in bed; exhaustion replaced by curiosity, and stared in the doorway. Almost immediately as he saw the source of the loud, monotonous sound, he sighed again and wondered how he could have possibly thought the noise was anything else.

Kneeling in the doorway was a young boy about eight years old in blue and white striped pyjamas. His brownish black hair wildly spread out on his head, he held a plunger to the top of his forehead. Seeing his father upright in bed, he slowly walked over to the edge of the bed, holding the plunger high. "EXTERMINATE HARRY POTTER!" he shouted in a monotone as he came ever closer to Harry's side.

Getting up out of bed, Harry stood in front of his son. "Albus put the plunger away please. I'm going to go make some oatmeal right now. Go to your room and get changed. You know your mum wants to sleep a bit longer," he stated, staring Albus in the eyes.

However, Albus refused to put the plunger away. A determined look on his face, he continued talking in that monotone of his. "I AM NOT ALBUS," he said, "I AM A DALEK. AND I HAVE COME TO EXTERMINATE HARRY-"

But he couldn't complete his sentence because, tired of his son's antics, Harry had whisked away the plunger from Albus' ands and lifted the boy up in a big swoop. Albus giggled and tried to wrench free from his father's grasp as he rushed down the stairs. After placing his son in a chair and rushing to the refrigerator to get some instant oatmeal and strawberries, he quickly fixed breakfast and placed it on the table for Albus and him, thanking goodness that James was at a sports event at the moment and Lily at a friend's house.

When his son was done eating, he decided to ask him what he wanted to do. Harry mentally grumbled as he remembered the interview he had to go to at the Daily Prophet later in the day.

"So, Albus, what do you want to do this fine Saturday?"

Playing with his spoon, Albus answered. "Watch telly."

"Okay. Movie or show?" Harry asked back. He glanced at the TV that he had somehow made work in his magical household.

Albus smiled at his father, moving over to his usual spot on the couch. "Show of course."

"Which one?" Harry knew the answer before he asked.

Now on the sofa, rocking back and forth, his son stared at Harry. "You know which one, Daddy."

Sighing as he went to the cabinet where Ginny kept every sort of media they owned, he retorted, "Which series?"

"Two, please!" Albus' rocking became more frantic as he imagined the bliss to come.

And that was how Harry was stuck listening to the Doctor Who theme song all morning long.

Massaging his temples as he heard the notes for the millionth time that day, Harry contemplated how Albus had gotten so into this programme.

Albus had come down sick with some sort of illness. A cold, a flu- who knew. But the only thing that Albus had strength to do amidst his coughs and sniffles was to watch television.

However, there hadn't really been anything good on. There were maybe a few horrible kids shows on the local station and of course, the ever-present news. But just as Harry was about to cut it off, Albus pointed to the picture on the screen. "I want to watch that, Dad."

Harry looked at the television screen to see a man with horribly messy brown hair and sideburns run across some strange-looking grass, holding hands with a blonde woman. The man had funny brown-rimmed glasses on and was waving a metal instrument in the air. After watching it for a couple of seconds and deciding that it was appropriate for his son, he went to go look over some of his reports from the Auror department.

He had no idea of the obsession to follow.

It turned out that what Albus had seen was a sci-fi show called Doctor Who. And his son loved every second. Soon, before he and Ginny even knew what was happening, they had bought every series of the show to date- so that would be about six. He was soon goaded into watching the programme with his son and he had to admit it was better than a lot of shows he had seen on television before. But he just didn't understand Albus' total infatuation with it. He had to watch a show almost everyday. And now, he spent hours pretending to be the Doctor, or Rose or Martha or Donna or Amy or even Jack- any other companion on the show. He even liked to be the Master or, as he had recently taken to, one of the Doctor's mortal enemies- the Daleks. He had even requested a model of the Doctor's spaceship, the TARDIS, for his birthday.

Frankly, Harry was now tired after six months. Tired of the role-play and the fantasy of it all. Tired of inside jokes and references he didn't understand. Just thinking about it made his head hurt, and Harry soon found himself settling into a nice, nice nap.

He woke up with a start. How long had he been asleep? And what _was_ that peculiar sound? Deciding to investigate the strange whirring and wheezing noise that sounded as if it was coming from the yard, Harry pulled pack the blinds in front of the sitting room windows. His mouth dropped open. It couldn't be. No, it couldn't possibly be, it was just pretend…

A blue police box was standing, half visible, in Ginny's petunias.

"What is it, Dad?" Albus asked, looking up from the telly.

Gulping, Harry looked at his son, readjusting his glasses. "Well son," he said, glancing outside the window again, "the TARDIS may be in our front yard."

* * *

**Yay! It's done! Right now, I'm kind of too tired to do one of my usual long author's notes, so I'm just going to say, hope you enjoyed cute obsessed Albus! The inspiration came from my seven-year-old cousin who is currently obsessed with Doctor Who like me.**


	2. A Real TARDIS in the Front Yard

"What?" Albus exclaimed as he immediately turned off the television and ran to where his dad stood gazing out the window into the yard, awestruck. His eyes widening as he indeed saw a blue police box, he beamed at his father and hugged him. Harry looked down at his son, wondering what he was doing.

Albus released his confused parent from the embrace and started rambling. "Thank you so much, Dad! I just asked for a miniature size model, but this is the whole picture! It's amazing!" The young boy ran towards the door. "I'm going to check it out." And before Harry could even register what had just happened, Albus was outside. Shaking his head, Harry shouted out far to late, "It isn't a model, Albus!" Sighing as he realised what he had just allowed his son to do, the man also ran outside.

The TARDIS looked even more extraordinary in real life. It was painted a deep blue that Harry couldn't even begin to describe. It stood proud and majestic in their garden bed, and Harry began to mourn less over the fate of Ginny's petunias by the minute. The whole experience was just fantastic- a set from a programme on television that now may or may not be real in his own front yard!

But Harry had to remember the task at hand. Gazing around the huge expanse of grass and little ponds around his house, he wished on Merlin that Albus was around and hadn't gone into the TARDIS. His hopes were dashed, however, when Albus proved nowhere to be found.

Now, he had defeated some of the darkest wizards in the world. He also was one of the most accomplished Aurors in wizarding history. But now, Harry Potter was afraid to enter a police box. But though he was frightened, the man knew he had to check on the well being of his son. He stepped nearer to the box and pulled at the doors, surprised when they just flew open. No magic involved or necessary.

And tiptoeing in, Harry had the shock of his life.

Leaving the white wooden doors behind him, the man looked upwards at what appeared to be a console with numerous wires, buttons, and levers. In the middle of the circular controls was a huge circular controls was a huge cylindrical tube with a strange pulsating green light. The spherical walls around the console were a nice shade of coral and yellow. And up at the controls, inspecting everything was a very excited Albus Severus Potter.

Turning around to see his father standing there, the young boy ran over and hugged Harry. He gazed up at his father with a grin on his face yet again. "You even made it bigger on the inside! And the controls really seem to be working! I love you!" Albus practically squealed.

Deciding that he should finally tell his son the truth about "his TARDIS model," Harry pulled him aside more towards the doors they had entered in. Kneeling down to Albus' level, Harry put a hand on his shoulder. "Albus, this isn't a model. It just materialized in the yard." Gulping, the man added. "I think this might be the real TARDIS."

Instead of the apprehensive look he expected from his son, the boy lit up. Squeaking in an unmanly manner he asked his father, "So is the Doctor onboard?" Now pacing back and forth excitedly, Albus started babbling. "I wonder which regeneration he's on? And who his companion is? I hope K-9 is here, I love that robot… Maybe I'll be able to see his sonic screwdriver! Maybe he'll let me fly the TARDIS! Maybe…"

His rambling was cut off when the pair heard a soft groan and several coughs from somewhere in the vicinity. Quickly putting his hands over his son's mouth, Harry pulled Albus into a corner.

After a few seconds of silence, a voice rang out. "Doctor, are you alright?" a clearly female voice called.

Another groan was heard followed by the sound of a person standing up. Footsteps were also heard before the man shouted back. "Just fine, Martha." The whole room seemed to light up a bit and the distinctive noise of machinery started going. Through the sliver of light he could see behind the structure they had hid behind, Harry could make out a long coat and some legs. "Seems the TARDIS was forcefully steered by the vortex a bit off-course. We'll just see where we are so we can feel coordinated and then head back inside," the voice shouted again.

Suddenly, Albus sneezed from where Harry's hand still stood firmly over his mouth. Ignoring his son's constant squirming, the man froze, not daring to breathe.

The people near the console seemed to freeze too. Harry barely caught sight of the man lifting his finger to his lips. The footsteps and sound of their rustling clothing slowly became ever closer. "What do you think it is?" the girl named Martha whispered.

Harry saw the man shake his head. "I don't know," he said back. "Nothing should be able to board the TARDIS; the doors should be locked."

Albus' struggling was becoming even more violent now and Harry wondered just how much longer he'd able to hold on to him. His grip was slipping, slipping…

Albus suddenly wrenched free from his father's grasp. Silently cursing as he stepped out of his hiding place, Harry was able to see just in time his son throw a huge hug around the Doctor.

"Oh my god I love you!" Albus shouted as he hugged the bewildered man even harder. Seeing the dark-skinned woman next to him, he then let go and embraced her instead. "And Martha!" he squealed. "I love you too!" Stepping back moments later, he inspected the pair of time-travellers. "You look exactly like you should; those costumers are good," he approved. Now walking in circles around them, Albus continued to ramble. "Where are you right now, I wonder? Is it after the Judoon? Have you found out about the Master?" The young boy threw his hands up in the air. "So many possibilities!"

Extremely embarrassed now by his son's behaviour, Harry intervened in the conversation and took his son aside. Glancing up at the Doctor and his companion, he tried not to blush. "Uh, sorry," he stammered, staring at their baffled expressions. "My son's a big fan. Sorry to have bothered you. We'll um… we'll be going now." He spun around to make his getaway when a hand tapped him on the shoulder. The face of the tenth Doctor, in all its glory, stared back at him. "Who exactly are you?" the man asked condescendingly.

Straightening the tie he had put so carelessly on that morning, Harry tried to reply. "I'm Harry Potter, sir," he said. Gesturing towards Albus, he continued, "And this is my son, Albus Potter."

He was not prepared at all for what happened next. For a few moments, Martha and the Doctor looked flabbergasted. Then, smiles lit up their faces, and they started chuckling. Soon, they were laughing hysterically, tears in their eyes. Harry tried to figure out what was so funny.

Still giggling, Martha tried to ask a coherent question. "Are you… is your name really Harry Potter?" she wheezed.

Nodding his head slowly, Harry responded. "Yeah. What's so funny?"

"Oh nothing, nothing," the Doctor replied with a few last laughs. His face became hard again as he looked at Albus. "I think the real question you should be asking, Mr. Potter, is why your son knows so much about my personal life," he scowled.

Harry honestly didn't know how to reply. How do you reply to a question from a thought-to-be-fictional character from one of the most acclaimed and loved shows on television? He had absolutely no idea.

Noticing his silence, the Doctor rubbed his hands together a bit nervously. "Well, Harry," he said, looking around. "We obviously have some topics to talk about; questions to be answered. And, with your permission and hospitality, I think we should go inside and discuss over tea. Nothing like a cuppa or two to fix a situation like this." Harry then watched now bewildered as well, as the Doctor and Martha nodded to him and opened the doors of the TARDIS, walking out into his front yard. Shrugging and joining them outside, Albus exited the room behind the pair.

And, wondering what exactly was going on, Harry eventually stepped out too, hoping this huge mystery would finally be solved.

* * *

**Yay! Next chapter up. I've been real surprised by how many people like this story, but I'm definitely not complaining about the positive response. I just hope the characters aren't too OOC and that I did them justice. I'm sure Albus seems a little girl-like, but I've always seen him that way.**

**As always, hope you enjoyed, and, with finals done this week (hallelujah!), I'll have more time to write on other stories, including this one. Allons-y readers! Got to go back to studying!**


	3. The Real and Whole and Utter Truth

"So, Mr. Potter, who does your interior decorating? Whoever it is, they surely do a very good job, I'll have them know," the Doctor said, nodding over in his direction.

"Umm… my wife, Ginny. She really just buys a few random things from the store and puts them together. No effort at all, actually," Harry answered, nervously twisting his hands together as the Doctor nodded again, silently acknowledging and accepting this statement.

Harry cursed as he felt one of Albus' Eleventh Doctor figurines poke into his lower back. He had done just about everything to make sure this current, so very much alive, regeneration of the Doctor and Martha Jones did not know anything about the television programme in their honour. In fact, he was extremely anxious that with every movement and sentence Albus uttered, the man would find out about the show. He had already had to race into the house ahead of the Doctor, seeming very rude and strange indeed, trying to stuff Albus' DVDs into the cabinet and put the plunger back near the toilet and hide the figurines and books and such… he was already exhausted with this encounter, and really, really wasn't ready for what looked like the Doctor's oncoming interrogation.

But as he kept trying to hide his own secret from this man and his companion, he couldn't help but think they were hiding something as well. It was the little things- like laughing when they learned his name, or the raised eyebrows of the pair when he mentioned Ginny, and the book the Doctor had produced out of seemingly thin air that he now held in his hand.

Harry looked at the Time Lord again just in time to see him sigh and clasp his hands together, like he had decided just to dive head-on into the situation at hand. "So, Harry, have you ever… heard of a woman named JK Rowling?"

_"Where is this going?" _Harry silently wondered to himself, but replied anyway. "No. Uh, not to my knowledge. But I'm not very influenced in music or pop culture or really anything of the sort, if that's what you want as an answer," the man rambled.

The Doctor shook his head, chuckling, as Martha, sitting right next to him, gave a nervous giggle too.

His face soon became deadly serious however, as he stared into Harry's eyes. "Harry, I really don't expect you to believe me, but in order to understand what's going on with your son here, I'm going to have to explain this to you. I know that you probably won't like what I'm about to tell you either, and may think it an invasion of your privacy, but please, just listen to what I'm going to tell you for a minute. Then I'll just help you with whatever Albus is experiencing and be on my way." He glanced over to Martha, who gave him a slight nod in consolation. "So," the Doctor said, weakly smiling at Harry. "Will you listen to what I have to say?"

Of course, he didn't really understand what the man was on about. But one thing was for sure- Harry Potter did want answers. So the man nodded yes.

The Doctor started talking, pushing himself back into the couch. "You see, Harry, what supposedly is your life- and no, I'm not sure if any of it really is true, I've only just met you- was written down by this woman, Joanne Kathleen Rowling. It basically talks about seven years of your…" He looked to the ceiling, as if he was searching for a word in the cracked plaster. "…School life." The Time Lord looked back at the human as if making sure he understood. "Martha and I… well, we all thought it fictional until just a few hours ago, actually. But now, sitting in front of you, it seems to be true." Then, as if it would be any consolation, the Doctor handed Harry a book, pointing at the cover. "This is the first book, supposedly about your first year after primary school."

Brimming over in confusion, Harry's eyes widened as he took in the title of the book- Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. And there, on the front- that wasn't really him in front of the Hogwarts Express, was it? So many emotions cluttered through his mind as all the horror, the excitement, the happiness and friendship and determination and loneliness and grief of that year and the years after at Hogwarts came crashing down on him, the man only a bit aware of Albus fidgeting on the couch next to him, and the Doctor rambled on away.

"I mean, it's really actually brilliant," Harry heard the Time Lord say as he sailed the feelings inside him. "That magic could really actually exist! Mind you, it's just a fluctuation of Artron energy and a mutated atomic form of Huon particles, as I've deduced from the levels in your house with my sonic, but still, brilliant! And all the things you've potentially done, Mr. Potter, if the books are true! You're a hero in your own right! I dare say, Martha and me are some of your biggest fans, honestly. Such an amazing and adventurous life. And now you, here with your own family. So absolutely astonishing what you humans can do…"

And, who knows if it was the man's incessant logorrhea or his own fluctuating emotions, but Harry couldn't take it anymore. He couldn't dare handle this man knowing so much of his life- a deeply personal one at that. He couldn't take the memories that had started resurfacing, the ones he had tried so hard to repress after getting a job at the Ministry. The anger inside him almost felt as if Voldemort was in his mind again, and it was going to take over his whole essence. "Get out," Harry angrily whispered, finally able to get words out that had been shaking in his mind ever since the Doctor had shown him the book.

'Sorry?" the Doctor asked, an idiotic grin on his face as he looked at Mr. Potter. "Didn't hear you there."

"Get out now," Harry repeated himself, trying to take control of his feelings but not necessarily achieving his goal.

"Oi, that's a bit harsh, don't you think? You haven't even given me my cuppa," the man said, motioning to the cup of tea on the stove. Martha looked ever more uneasily as she slowly stood up from the sofa to stand near the Doctor, who had moved more towards Harry when he had left the couch. Albus, forgotten, cowered near the media cabinet that Ginny had so painstakingly organised.

"I'm telling you get out now, Doctor. This is my home, and my property, and I want you to leave it. NOW." Harry stressed again.

"But why?" the Doctor said, stepping forward to Harry. "Why do you want me to leave, Mr. Potter?'

Suddenly, Harry couldn't control it anymore. He exploded.

"You just barge into my front yard, for one thing," the man hissed, staring the Doctor eye to eye. "And totally disturb my privacy, just to tell me that I'm fictional." He was practically scathing now. "Like my emotions, all the things I've felt in my life, have no meaning whatsoever. Well, I'll tell you one thing, Doctor," Harry continued, taking sick pleasure in the fact that both him and Martha were backing towards the door, " This JK woman is a scam, I'm real, my emotions are real, I AM NOT FICTIONAL, and I want you off my property. I am not the one who isn't real. You are!"

Everything happened at once. Amidst Martha and the Doctor's confused and utterly terrified looks, Albus bumped into the cabinet, spilling its contents over the floor. The child quickly scrambled to put them back, the Doctor squatting down with him, picking up a DVD-

And in that moment, time seemed to literally stop. The Doctor's eyes widening with recognition at the Doctor Who boxset in front of him, that brain of his working out the kinks, figuring out all that was exactly going on. Then, he silently helped Albus put everything back in the cabinet. Before standing up and staring a still-fuming Harry down. "We'll answer your prayer, Mr. Potter. Come on, Martha. Back to the TARDIS."

However, Martha didn't move a foot. "Why, Doctor? What is it?"

Still looking Harry in the eyes, he sighed and answered Martha. "We've fallen through a hole in the Void into a whole different universe. Some sort of accidental temporal shift. Parallel universe, actually, you might say. Shouldn't be possible anymore, but somehow it is," he started. Then, finally glancing away from Harry, the man sadly smiled at Martha. "Basically, in this universe, his story is real, while ours…" he judged her reaction. "Is just a television programme. Now come along. And sorry to bother you, Harry," the Doctor said as he opened the front door and stepped outside. Martha glanced in shock at the Potters before remarking goodbye as she began to shut the door in confusion.

But Albus suddenly ran to the doorway and shouted with all his might. "WAIT!" And Harry watched, now at the doorway, as the Time Lord and his companion swiveled around. The pair still standing still, the man watched as Albus ran towards them and looked at the Doctor with those piercing green eyes of his. "You always give someone you meet and find in favour, especially if they've changed your viewpoint of the world, a trip in the TARDIS." The child rocked on the balls of his feet. "Please, just one trip?"

Something softened in the Doctor's expression, as he stared at the little boy with so much hope in his eyes. Allowing himself to smile, if only a little, the time traveller looked at Harry and said, "If it's okay with your dad."

And something softened in Harry too, as he watched Albus' expression and the Doctor and his companion's warmth about welcoming the child aboard. Against everything, everything he had just stood for, Harry spoke. He couldn't really dismiss an offer to see all of time and space, could he?

"Only if I can come with you."

* * *

**So yay! New chapter after such a long time! Sorry for the wait, I've just kind of had a lot of writer's block and stuff to do and yeah, this summer hasn't been as productive as I thought it would be.**

**Anyway, I just kind of decided that the Doctor would be pretty up-front with Harry about the series named after him, just because he was so interested as to why Albus knew so much about his life and probably wanted to get straight to that, but at the same time would feel embarrassed and guilty if he didn't tell Harry about the Harry Potter books. And if you just got through that statement and actually cared about it, then good for you.**

**Well, now Harry and Albus are off on their adventures with the Doctor! DUN DUN DUN DUN! If you have any suggestions about what you want to happen, just message me or leave a review! Actually, leave a review anyway, they help me write faster and better!**

**Oh, and the whole how-is-Harry-and-everybody-going-to-travel-through-space-and-time-if-they're-not-in-the-Doctor's-universe thing will be answered next chapter. But if you really want an explanation now, just ask.**

**Okay! Well thanks for reading, reviewing, and following, and allons-y!**


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